1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to games, more particularly to card-type games that are suitable for use in gaming establishments, and more particularly to poker-type card games that are suitable for use in gaming establishments.
2. Background of the Art
Casinos and leisure establishments continually require new games to offer their clientele. Such games are generally required to enable each player to play against a banker (who usually also acts as dealer) provided by the casino, rather than against other players. Alternatively, in a xe2x80x9ccard roomxe2x80x9d game each player may have the option to act as banker, whilst the establishment runs the game on behalf of the banker and takes fees from the players.
Players typically enjoy games which can be played rapidly and which offer players a plurality of choices. A plurality of choices heightens player interest in games. It would therefore be desirable to provide card games comprising a plurality of new wagering options.
Let it Ride Bonus(copyright) Stud Poker, as disclosed in Breeding U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/495,149 filed on Jan. 31, 2000 entitled MULTI-TIERED WAGERING METHOD AND GAME, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference, describes a primary card game in which the player plays a 5 card poker game. In the base game, a player makes a three part wager on the occurrence of one of a number of predetermined winning hands. Each player is dealt three cards, and the dealer is also dealt three cards. One dealer card is discarded, and the other two cards are placed face down on the table. The player may withdraw a first portion of his bet after he has examined his partial three-card hand. The community cards are used by each player to form a five card hand. After the dealer turns the first community card face up, the player is given the opportunity to withdraw a second portion of his bet. The third bet must remain at risk.
Standard poker rankings are used to determine the hierarchy of payouts. The hands that pay (highest to lowest) in a typical LET IT RIDE(copyright) basic game are: royal flush, straight flush, four of a kind, full house, flush, straight, three of a kind, two pair, and a pair. Each winning hand pays odds, and all winning outcomes and corresponding payout odds are listed in a pay table. Optionally, the player can place a side bet on the occurrence of certain high ranking hands within the predetermined winning outcomes in the base game. Both the player cards and the dealer""s common cards are used to define the player""s hand and corresponding hand ranking in the side bet game. Players are required to make a multiple part bet, and can optionally withdraw part of the bet upon viewing some of the cards.
It would be desirable to provide a poker-style game with simplified betting structure and dealing procedures that provides a player with sufficient betting options to maintain player interest, and follows the rules of poker, as poker rules are well known throughout the world.
In one form of the invention, a casino wagering game is provided that this disclosure comprises the steps of: 1) placing a single part wager to participate in the game; 2) a dealer dealing a hand of three cards to each player who placed a wager; and 3) resolving the player hands according to a predetermined hierarchy of poker hands. In one form of the invention, the hands are resolved against a pay table of predetermined winning poker outcomes and corresponding odds. Players are paid odds (payouts that are multiples of an amount wagered) when their hand consists of a predetermined winning outcome. This form of the invention is referred to as xe2x80x9cthe game against the pay table.xe2x80x9d
In a preferred form of the invention, the game is played as a live casino card game with physical cards, comprising the steps of: placing a single part wager to participate in a casino wagering three-card poker type game; dealing a hand consisting of three cards to each player who placed a single part wager; and resolving each player""s hand according to the rules of poker against a payout table providing payouts for predetermined ranks of poker-type hands; wherein at least some of the payouts are proportional to the single part wager in resolving hands.
The present invention is also a method of playing a casino card game utilizing a standard deck of cards, comprising the steps of: placing a wager to participate in a three card poker game against a dealer; dealing three cards to the player; dealing at least three cards to the dealer; and resolving the hands according to the standard rules of poker. For purposes of this disclosure, this form of the invention is referred to as xe2x80x9cthe game against the dealer.xe2x80x9d
The three card hand against a pay table may be played individually, or in combination with a three card game against a dealer. The three card game against the dealer may be played individually, or in combination with a three card game against a pay table. The bets on each segment of the game may be mandatory, or optional. Bets on both games are mandatory in one example of the invention.
Other examples of the invention include playing one or more of the three card games in combination with other game segments as well. For example, in combination with placing a wager on a three card hand against a pay table, the player can bet one or more additional wagers on the occurrence of a five card poker hand, where the player receives at least two additional cards after the resolution of the three card hand, either in the form of dealt cards, dealer hand cards or common cards.
The three card poker game play methods of the present invention may be practiced as house banked games, or player banked games. When a game is house banked, the dealer is also the banker. When a game is player banked, the house provides a dealer, and the players take turns acting as banker. The house takes a commission either at a flat rate, or takes a percentage of bets placed.